Whereas most water produced from onshore oil and gas operations is disposed via reinjection, some waters, such as those from offshore production platforms, coastal production, and some onshore wells, must be treated to remove organic constituents before the water is discharged. Current methods for reducing residual free phases and dissolved organic carbon are not always fully effective in meeting regulatory limits. In addition, cost, space requirements, and ease of use are important factors in any treatment system. Surfactant-modified zeolite (SMZ) has been used successfully to treat contaminated ground water for organic and inorganic constituents. This research will use laboratory batch and column studies to design a field system that will be used to treat produced waters to reduce dissolved and free-phase organic constituents. The system will be designed to operate simply and to have low operating costs. Methods for regeneration of the spent zeolite will also be tested, as will the treatment system at a field production site in the final project task. Research over the past six months has focused on the method development, batch adsorption studies to demonstrate removal of target organic constituents, and the selection of a likely test site and characterization of produced waters from the site. Current contacts for selection, and ultimately, testing of example oil field waters include Phillips Petroleum Corp. (offshore location, Gulf of Mexico); MCA Petroleum Corporation in Flatonia, Texas; Amoco production in Farmington, New Mexico; and the New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources (mining operators for coal bed waters from the Farmington area). Water from Phillips Petroleum was received in August and analyzed at the University of Texas. These waters are being used in the laboratory to evaluate interactions between oil field waters and the SMZ. A site visit to MCA Petroleum operations was undertaken on October 12, 2000, and the analyses of samples taken are included in this report. MCA may not be chosen as a field site due to non-detected levels of volatile organic compounds in the sampled waters. Other field site contacts will be visited in November and December 2000. Current funding to the subcontract with Los Alamos National Laboratory was not received from DOE until August 30, 2000, thus slowing progress in field test site identification. Improved contact with the State of Texas Railroad Commission will help to move this part of the project forward. New Mexico Tech has now acquired a full-time technician for regeneration testing.
